Retired U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Gen. David Furness ’87 serves as the Institute’s 16^th superintendent.

Originally from Columbus, Ohio, Furness graduated summa cum laude from VMI with a degree in history. He attained the rank of first captain and regimental commander, the highest-ranking position a cadet can earn. He commissioned into the Marine Corps, where he served for 36 years before retiring in 2023.

Throughout his distinguished career he has served in a variety of command and staff billets in both the operating forces and the supporting establishment. As a lieutenant he served as a platoon commander; as a captain and major he served in the 1st Marine Division as the commanding officer of Company K, and the operations officer of the 3rd Battalion, 7th Marines. As a lieutenant colonel he again served in the 1st Marine division as the G3 Plans officer, deputy G-3, commanding officer of the 1st Battalion, 1st Marines, then as the executive officer of the 1st Marine Regiment. As a Colonel he commanded the 1st Marine Regiment.

As legislative assistant to the Commandant of the Marine Corps from 2013 to 2017, he served as liaison between the Marine Corps and both chambers of congress, advocating for funding while navigating the new Budget Control Act. A lifelong learner and proponent of education, Furness created curriculum and delivered training to organizations of up to 17,000, led a flagship professional military education program, and pioneered a two-year Master of Public Policy program with George Mason University in Fairfax. 

From 2017 to 2018, he served as the senior U.S. military officer on the African continent for Combined Joint Task Force–Horn of Africa, focused on counterterrorism, regional security, and strategic relations development across 11 nations. He introduced process improvements which brought $2 million in monthly savings and elevated aircraft utilization rates to 90% which delivered another $12.78 million in savings. 

From 2018 to 2020, he was Commanding General of the 2nd Marine division, leading a combined organization of 17,000, and held global responsibility for supporting operations in Indo-Pacific, European, African, Middle Eastern, and South American regions. He managed over $2 billion in assets and executed the largest Marine Corps training exercise in over 40 years. He also pioneered a peer-to-peer personal counseling program that reduced suicide and suicide attempts by 66% in just 18 months. 

As a three-star general he served as Deputy Commandant for Plans, Policy and Operations at the Marine Corps headquarters in the Pentagon from 2020 to 2023, synchronizing operations and the global deployment of 200,000 active-duty and reserve Marines across 17 countries and 24 time zones.

Most recently he has been employed by J.A. Green & Company, a bipartisan government relations firm, as executive vice president of defense programs.  

Furness holds two master’s degrees. One in military studies from the Marine Corps University at Quantico, and the second in national security and strategic studies from the National Defense University in Washington, D.C.

His personal decorations include the Distinguished Service Medal, Defense Superior Service Medal, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal with combat distinguishing device, Combat Action Ribbon, Meritorious Service Medal, Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, and the Navy and Marine Corps Achievement Medal.